Parents Anonymous, FOFC Branch

[Coffee Warlord]

We just finished with another one of them ourselves. Un. Fun.

[Coffee Warlord]

So when does my boy get to go on his first date with your daughter, btw? :)

[AnalBumCover]

So when does my boy get to go on his first date with your daughter, btw? :)
Date? We're already taking offers of dowry from numerous suiters. Show us whatcha got and we'll take you into consideration. ;)

[Coffee Warlord]

Ahem, the woman's family provides the dowry, thank you very much!

What do YOU have!

[AnalBumCover]

Does growing debt count? You can have it!

[Coffee Warlord]

Well shit. Guess I'm gonna have to shop elsewhere for a proper dowry.

[Wolfpack]

My younger daughter turns five tomorrow. Yep. Five years...five wonderful, awesome, terrifying, stupefying, maddening, frustrating, engrossing, heavenly, hellish, loving, and spectacular years.

Between her and her sister, I'd say a fair rubric is I've aged a year for every one of theirs, so really I'm not 35, I'm 47. :D

[AnalBumCover]

Still trying to figure out when Ashley is either hungry or sleepy. Learned the hard way that last night, she was just sleepy.

[RedHawk00]

leaving kids for 1 week for the first time as a couple... we shall see how relaxing it is

[AnalBumCover]

Ashley Skye, two months old today. The longest two months of my life, yet time seems to fly by so fast.

Something I guess only a parent would understand.

[Coffee Warlord]

Just kill me now. At a touch under 3 months, we're pretty sure he's started teething.

[AnalBumCover]

Just kill me now. At a touch under 3 months, we're pretty sure he's started teething.

Great... something else to look forward to.

Meanwhile, I took mine to get her first round of vaccines yesterday. And I thought I had heard the worst of her screams.

[Coffee Warlord]

I wouldn't worry too much - this is supposedly rather on the early side for it to start. Of course, we're both pretty burnt the hell out right now, so it's just one of those 'good lord, what else' things.

[Coffee Warlord]

Ugh. Just got into a tiff with the wife. See above burned out status, I'm pissy and feeling like I'm trying to do every damn thing in the house (and the house is winning), and it's been seriously rough with that AND the fact she hasn't been home till late for like, the last 2 weeks (I also get the joy of taking the boy to and from my folks house en route to work every day).

Of course, when I dared voice some frustration when I'm trying to figure out what I should make for dinner, clusterfuck ensued, now we're all tired AND irritated at one another.

I need beer.

[AnalBumCover]

Ugh. Just got into a tiff with the wife. See above burned out status, I'm pissy and feeling like I'm trying to do every damn thing in the house (and the house is winning), and it's been seriously rough with that AND the fact she hasn't been home till late for like, the last 2 weeks (I also get the joy of taking the boy to and from my folks house en route to work every day).

Of course, when I dared voice some frustration when I'm trying to figure out what I should make for dinner, clusterfuck ensued, now we're all tired AND irritated at one another.

I need beer.
The house always wins. Ours came to a point where we just decided to pick up the local pennysaver and hire a housekeeper for the day. Best $70 I spent.

Also, sounds like one or both of you need a break. It's Friday. Leave him at the grandparents' house a bit longer and make it a short date night. Just last night the Mrs and I had an early dinner out before we picked up my daughter.

Just a little taste of what used to be.

Good luck.

[chesapeake]

Dinners are hard before the baby starts sleeping through the night. Anything that requires more than .054% of your brain capacity to construct is because you are operating on such a reduced capacity from sleep deprivation.

My wife is the head chef in the house, and her advice is to 1) pare down your menu to what you can produce in your sleep; 2) leftovers are your best friend; and, 3) when in doubt, order out.

My advice (and not just in these circumstances) is to be sure not to go to bed angry with each other. Sleep is such a precious commodity that you don't want to waste even 30 seconds of it ruminating about your frustration with your wife.

[JeeberD]

The house always wins. Ours came to a point where we just decided to pick up the local pennysaver and hire a housekeeper for the day. Best $70 I spent.


Yup. After numerous fights between the Mrs and myself about who was responsible for keeping which part of the house clean we decided to go ahead and spend $120/month and hire a maid service. It's the best money we've ever spent...

[AnalBumCover]

Ashley has picked up a cold from daycare. Stuffy nose and coughing is leading to gagging and spitting up her formula. :(

[cubboyroy1826]

My oldest ships off to Knox College at the end of the summer. He is 18 and done with his first two years of college locally. This will be the first time he is away for an extended period of time (only 2.5 hours away) which is really going to be weird to say the least.

[Coffee Warlord]

Heh. I can get him in good with campus security if you'd like. One of my oldest friends works security there.

edit: Or I can arrange a damn good practical joke in on him, if you'd like. :)

[JeeberD]

An old girlfriend of mine went to Knox for her undergrad...

[DaddyTorgo]

Heh. I can get him in good with campus security if you'd like. One of my oldest friends works security there.

edit: Or I can arrange a damn good practical joke in on him, if you'd like. :)

You absolutely need to do this...the latter. :D

[DaddyTorgo]

An old girlfriend of mine went to Knox for her undergrad...

picsplzkthnx

[Coffee Warlord]

You absolutely need to do this...the latter. :D

He will absolutely do it, too. I just need a name and permission. :)

[DaddyTorgo]

He will absolutely do it, too. I just need a name and permission. :)

permission schmission. You just need a name!

[JAG]

If you're a parent with a young child, you really owe it to yourself to go to Audible.com and download the free children's book Go the fuck to sleep narrated by Samuel L Jackson. Hilarious and what I've thought to myself numerous times.

[chesapeake]

I saw the story in the Post when this book came out and got a good laugh about that. Adding Samuel L. is priceless.

[PilotMan]

Alright, so this thread needs a good bump.

So a little while back we had some people over to the house, parents and kids. And one family ended up spending the night with us. That family happens to have a girl who is the same age as my middle son (they are both in 3rd grade.) I also have a son who is in 2nd. So the three of them ended up crashing on a pull out that we have.

FF to this week. My youngest says to my wife, "When is she going to come have another sleep over? We really liked sleeping with her."

.......and so it begins.

[WSUCougar]

Anyone have any advice for when a Cialis ad comes on with your kid watching? My son Drew (4th grader) has been watching the NLCS with me and damned if I know what to say when that stuff pops up.




Pun intended...

[Barkeep49]

Does he ask about it?

[JonInMiddleGA]

Enjoyable day to be a parent today.

Learned a few hours ago that Will has advanced to the next round of all-state band auditions, following today's district level auditions. I have a rather skilled 13 y/o tuba player apparently.

At least 9 months worth of work into that (and a full year of kicking himself for a sub-par audition last year). It's this competition that kept him interested in band despite a really really weak music program at school (required to be an active school band member to compete). It's a tribute to him, to his mother for keeping him on track & hauling him to lessons an hour away regularly, and to an awesome private instructor who is a band director
at another school but teaches a couple of kids on the side (tuba specialist).

Funny thing is that he kicked himself even worse today, completely convinced that he'd completely blown today's as well ("I sucked even worse than last year"). I don't think he was as miserable as he was after last year's disappointment but he was really mad at himself for "letting the judges get in my head" after he overheard some not-so-whispered comments between them during his performance. As it turns out "he's much better lyrically than on his scales" must have been praise for his etude rather than criticism of his scales. But it was in his head so much that he felt like he completely blew the sight reading portion.

Granted, he kind of squeaked into the next round. Scored a 73, cutoff for the next round was a 70, but this is very much a "survive and advance" kind of thing. He could have had a 99 today & it wouldn't have helped him in the next round,everything resets.

Now, down Perry, GA & the final auditions in early January, with a very short time days to learn a more difficult piece. Plus his first ever experience with true "finals" coming up week after next right in the middle of it all.

You can tell 'em all you want, you can believe they get it, but as a parent it's great to see life reinforce the connection between effort & success. I can't take a bit of credit for this success, but I'm awfully happy he gets to enjoy it.

[Alf]

Anyone have any advice for when a Cialis ad comes on with your kid watching? My son Drew (4th grader) has been watching the NLCS with me and damned if I know what to say when that stuff pops up.




Pun intended...

Use a browser with ad-blocking plugins.

[Coffee Warlord]

Diarrhea and a really nasty diaper rash because of the aforementioned does not a happy baby make.

[AnalBumCover]

Cold and flu season here. Runny nose, coughing, high fever, then vomiting led us right to the ER.

Some wet towels and a Tylenol suppository later, we were back home in an hour.

[Coffee Warlord]

Heh. Nasssty stomach bug going around that got our boy (note the aforementioned diarrhea). Took out our entire daycare's staff, to where she had to close for the first time in 8 years.

[AnalBumCover]

Ever since Ashley learned to pick up things with her hands, she doesn't want to be spoon fed anymore and only wants finger foods that she can feed herself. I now have to distract her with a toy she can hold so I can feed her.

Any other tricks I can use here?

[JonInMiddleGA]

Ever since Ashley learned to pick up things with her hands, she doesn't want to be spoon fed anymore and only wants finger foods that she can feed herself. I now have to distract her with a toy she can hold so I can feed her. Any other tricks I can use here?

That's kind of a stage of independence most of them go through, best I can tell. I don't recall it being a big problem with our son, but I watched my wife's cousin deal with it a couple of week's ago with her infant twins. She gave them something that's finger food to mess with along with whatever you're trying to feed them. Makes a helluva mess but she did manage to get a reasonable amount of food down them amidst them distracting themselves/satisfying the urge to be DIY feeders.

[Autumn]

Ever since Ashley learned to pick up things with her hands, she doesn't want to be spoon fed anymore and only wants finger foods that she can feed herself. I now have to distract her with a toy she can hold so I can feed her.

Any other tricks I can use here?

How old is she? Is she still nursing? It seems eons ago now, but I think I didn't owrry too much about how much food they were actually getting in their mouth at that stage because my boys were nursing still, so the solid stuff was just extra. I would think letting her cram stuff on her face while you spoon feed her might work.

[AnalBumCover]

How old is she? Is she still nursing? It seems eons ago now, but I think I didn't owrry too much about how much food they were actually getting in their mouth at that stage because my boys were nursing still, so the solid stuff was just extra. I would think letting her cram stuff on her face while you spoon feed her might work.
She's 9 months old. Started her on solids (rice cereal to start) at 6 months while continuing with the bottle. By 8 months or so, we started steaming our own veggies and blending them and reducing the bottle intake. Lately she's been pretty good at using her fingers to pick up stuff, and we give her snacks such as pieces of bread or cheerios. She's still on formula, so I'm not too worried about underfeeding her. But god... she pushes away the spoon like it's radioactive.

[Autumn]

Yeah I think we just didn't sweat the spoon stuff at that stage. Let her stuff her face with Cheerios and enjoy the moment to stuff some face in your mouth. But also, maybe giving her the finger food or a toy and then slipping the spoon in when you can.

I guess this is why they invented the "here comes the plane" game to maybe catch her attention and interest.

[Warhammer]

So Friday we had my 9 y.o.'s (he turns 10 in a week) birthday party at an ice rink. Everything is fine, kids get a free skating lesson and kids are having loads of fun. My wife and I talk to our BIL and SIL to discuss Christmas and other family birthdays coming up. Suddenly our 9 y.o. decides that it would be great to grab our younger son's hoodie as he is skating by. Needless to say, we wound up at the Minor Med about 45 mins. later.

I don't understand how he thought this would be funny...

[corbes]

Anyone have tips on surviving a five-hour plane flight with an active 19-month-old? We'll be flying to Florida in February. We did the same trip last year when she was seven months old but she was still doing the nursing-and-sleeping thing then. Now, not so much. Any thoughts?

[JeeberD]

It wasn't as long of a flight, but we did a flight to Chicago and back this summer when my sun was around 20 months. We scheduled the flights close to his usual naptime, brought plenty of toys, and a portable DVD player and his favorite movies. On both flights he slept about half the trip, then watched a movie the rest of the way.

Oh, and we're lucky because he he still has tubes in his ears, so pressure and popping wasn't an issue at all...

[JAG]

Anyone have tips on surviving a five-hour plane flight with an active 19-month-old? We'll be flying to Florida in February. We did the same trip last year when she was seven months old but she was still doing the nursing-and-sleeping thing then. Now, not so much. Any thoughts?

As soon as the seat belt light goes off, take her on a walk up and down the aisle (before the cart comes out). Maybe you'll get lucky and there will be a baby for her to look at (usually good for a few minutes of staring and babbling about). Make use of all the play options around your seat (safety placard, SkyMall, lights, vent, window shade was always a favorite for my kids). Sing to her. Ask for an extra plastic cup when the drinks come around, those are pretty good playthings. Make sure you're as we'll-rested as possible for the flight.

Good luck, in my opinion right around 18 months was the most challenging age for my kids to fly.

[sachmo71]

i've started to blog my parenting experiences.

familyatlas.wordpress.com

[Qwikshot]

Question: How old should a baby be to move from bassinet to crib?

Iggy doesn't like the bassinet but seemed to have been fine in his crib. The missus hates the idea of having him out of the bedroom but the nursery is warmer and I get sleep. We had him in the bouncer a bit but it poorly supports the neck and I was resigning myself to the carseat route but last night I plopped him in the crib, hit the music (rain setting) and let the ceiling light show go off and he seemed pretty calm.

[Qwikshot]

As soon as the seat belt light goes off, take her on a walk up and down the aisle (before the cart comes out). Maybe you'll get lucky and there will be a baby for her to look at (usually good for a few minutes of staring and babbling about). Make use of all the play options around your seat (safety placard, SkyMall, lights, vent, window shade was always a favorite for my kids). Sing to her. Ask for an extra plastic cup when the drinks come around, those are pretty good playthings. Make sure you're as we'll-rested as possible for the flight.

Good luck, in my opinion right around 18 months was the most challenging age for my kids to fly.

My wife wants to take our son out to Seattle possibly this fall, considering that is 9 to 10 months from now, I've been against it (we live 1.5h from Philadelphia). She just seems to lose the common sense on this topic, I'm half apt to let her go the trip alone with the baby. I think it's one of the worst thing parents can do (the stress alone can wear everyone out) unless it's absolutely neccessary.

When Zia was a year old, her mom and I flew her to Dallas for a my ex's mom's wedding, and she was pretty antsy on the flight, though I had her on the return flight and she was great until the last 10 minutes.

[Coffee Warlord]

Question: How old should a baby be to move from bassinet to crib?

Iggy doesn't like the bassinet but seemed to have been fine in his crib. The missus hates the idea of having him out of the bedroom but the nursery is warmer and I get sleep. We had him in the bouncer a bit but it poorly supports the neck and I was resigning myself to the carseat route but last night I plopped him in the crib, hit the music (rain setting) and let the ceiling light show go off and he seemed pretty calm.

We never used a bassinet at all. That's one battle I won - we never had him in our bedroom, and she acknowledged after the fact it was the right all. He did just fine in the crib.

[chesapeake]

1) Like many men, I have very little genuine authority in the decision-making process. However, after a week of absolutely miserable sleep for my wife, myself, and newborn daughter #1, I declared she was going to the crib in her room down the hall. My wife freaked out but was too exhausted to put up much of a fight. Lucky for me, I turned out to be absolutely right.

2) We took the same newborn daughter on the plane from DC to Seattle and back at 6 months. We paid for her own seat and took the non-stop. We did the same with my second daughter when she was 11 months. Both went just fine. One of the carry-ons was a big bag-o-toys-n-books which had enough to keep them happy for the duration of the flight.

[Autumn]

There's no right or wrong here. Our kids stayed in our bed for a year or two, eventually transitioning to their own bed. We never used a basinet or crib. So you should decide between the two of you what's something you both can believe in and agree on that makes the kid happy, but don't try to decide it on what's "right" or "wrong".

[AnalBumCover]

There's no right or wrong here. Our kids stayed in our bed for a year or two, eventually transitioning to their own bed. We never used a basinet or crib. So you should decide between the two of you what's something you both can believe in and agree on that makes the kid happy, but don't try to decide it on what's "right" or "wrong".
Solid advice. At six months I took it upon myself to use the Ferber method of sleep training, and after two nights I junked it. The wife and I couldn't stand the sound of little Ashley crying for long periods. Plus, the wife noticed a bit of separation anxiety when dropping the baby off at daycare. She never cried prior to that.

Now, using a strict bedtime routine - dinner, bath, soft music, and reading/singing - Ashley will fall asleep at lights out in her own crib. Even if she's not completely asleep when I lay her down, she's able to put herself to sleep long after I've left.

She sleeps throughout the night, and so do I.

[JonInMiddleGA]

There's no right or wrong here. Our kids stayed in our bed for a year or two, eventually transitioning to their own bed. We never used a basinet or crib. So you should decide between the two of you what's something you both can believe in and agree on that makes the kid happy, but don't try to decide it on what's "right" or "wrong".

+1

You have to find what works best for your own family. We did pretty much what you describe here, never regretted it for a minute.

[JAG]

My wife wants to take our son out to Seattle possibly this fall, considering that is 9 to 10 months from now, I've been against it (we live 1.5h from Philadelphia). She just seems to lose the common sense on this topic, I'm half apt to let her go the trip alone with the baby. I think it's one of the worst thing parents can do (the stress alone can wear everyone out) unless it's absolutely neccessary.

When Zia was a year old, her mom and I flew her to Dallas for a my ex's mom's wedding, and she was pretty antsy on the flight, though I had her on the return flight and she was great until the last 10 minutes.

I wouldn't refuse to fly somewhere just because you have a baby. Yes, it's not the easiest thing, but it's doable and 95+% of the people around you are understanding as long as you're making an effort. I say this as the veteran of many many flights with infants / toddlers (both sets of grandparents far away from us).

[JonInMiddleGA]

Time to update something I mentioned last March (quoted below for convenience)

Back for another round of lab work & doctor visits, as my son's chronic pain / chronic lethargy has returned as of about three weeks ago. After a blessedly normal summer & fall, with his Vitamin D levels stabilized with a 50k unit supplement every other week, occasional complaints surfaced in maybe late November/early December, he seemed to get through the Disney trip with only maybe one day of being a bit off, but by early January he was back on a familiar pattern. Last couple of weeks he missed several days of school, bumping up his regular Vit D dose to the previous level didn't seem to have much impact (at least not nearly enough), so it was back to the lab & doctor this week.

New D levels haven't come back yet, but today got an "official" diagnois of anemia - what had been borderline low RBC, hemoglobin, hematocrit (sp?), and iron levels are now all just a touch below normal across the board.

So for now they've added about 4x the normal recommended daily dose of iron to his menu, the D supplement continues & could be adjusted when the results finally come back, and a new round of tests for a few other items have been ordered (will do those next week). He's also doing the little home test kit thing to check for fecal blood, as one of the key suspicions is now a bleeding ulcer. He has most of the symptoms for that EXCEPT no stomach pain & not even a hint of any reaction good or bad to any dietary change. Pretty much every doctor he's had since about two weeks old has suspected something like an ulcer ... but never a single bit of proof of one nor an iota of change from any of the various short-term treatments like Zantec, et al that have been tried. Also under consideration are various mitochondrial possibilities, testosterone imbalance (possibly too high combined with too little physical activity, which can apparently cause bone/joint pain), stress-related issues that could manfiest with physical symptoms, and any of the dozens of really scary shit that parents can dream up in their nightmares.

The D issues alone would account for the symptoms, run of the mill anemia would account for at least most if not all of them as well. If I had to bet, I'm expecting that his B-12 levels (being checked in the next rounds of tests) will come back low as well. The combination of any of those would account for every symptom, although there's still questions about why they're all low. One of the things that worries me most tonight is the possibility of finding fecal blood but finding no ulcer, that would be a puzzling combo that seems to have a number of scary possible causes & I'm trying hard not to worry about those prematurely. Failing in that effort so far, but I'm trying.

The one bit of good news today was that his white blood cell count was exactly dead center of normal ... that at least rules out one of the scariest things we were worried about this time last year.


I don't think I've said much about this on the board previously but basically since Christmas we've had a persistent health problem with Will. Long story short, he had a flu-like bug right around the holidays but never really seemed to snap back from them. Most of January & February he was lethargic, daily complaints of chronic pain (my arms/legs hurt), to the point of missing an entire week of school last month. Doctors x2, no clue. Nearly 50 different blood tests -- looking for signs of things like leukemia, lupus, anemia, etc - nothing really out of the ordinary, low end of normal for iron & Vit B but that was about it. Took a long look at whether it might be psychological/emotional, really nothing serious enough to attribute this level of complaint to.

Meanwhile, he's miserable & we know it's for real: if my kid hits the door & goes to bed at 4pm, feels too bad to even touch his 360 for a week ... something ain't right.

Got a phone call from the doctor today, looks like they've pinpointed a very likely cause: severe Vitamin D deficiency. Doc says it's definitely enough to cause the symptoms, prescribed an 8-week "mega-dose" of D (and 1 hr of sunlight a day when possible) with a recheck at the end of that, likely a daily supplement to follow.

Too soon to say for sure of course, but if indeed this is the source of the problem, it's a heck of a lot better than a lot of the candidates previously considered & that's a great relief. And then we get to spend the rest of our lives worrying about how D deficiency is sometimes a mid/long range precursor to a cancer diagnosis. Parenting sure is fun, huh?

[AnalBumCover]

Has anyone here tried using baby sign language as an early form of communication? I was talking with my coworkers about my having to learn my 11-month-old's "language", and he mentioned I should try out sign language, which was incredibly successful with his sister's two kids. Are there any low cost/free sources out there that I can use?

[Coffee Warlord]

Lost 2012 father of the year already.

Took him in for his 1 year checkup. We're out in the waiting area, he trips and face-plants into the couch there. Caught him just right and cuts his gum. So there's my boy, screaming with blood all over his mouth.

...and then I took him in to get stabbed with 2 needles. Poor kid.

[Autumn]

Has anyone here tried using baby sign language as an early form of communication? I was talking with my coworkers about my having to learn my 11-month-old's "language", and he mentioned I should try out sign language, which was incredibly successful with his sister's two kids. Are there any low cost/free sources out there that I can use?

We did signs with both of our kids, as did a lot of our friends. No need to spend much on resources, and really you could always just make up your own signs even. Just signing to them as you talk, they are able to pick up the signs sooner than they can talk, which is fantastic. Our kids both made up their own signs as well once they had success communciating this way.

http://signwithme.com/images/SWM_cheat_sheet.jpg

There's one example of a sheet. We did buy something that had a little list of signs like that, and then you can find pictures or videos online to show you how to do the signs. The thing is, yo'ure only talking to your baby so it hardly matters if you get it right, as long as you're consistent. But there's tons of free sign language stuff out there, so just crib it from there.

All you do is use the sign as you're talking about stuff: "cat", "dog", "truck", "food". Big ones they love of course are "More" "eat" "drink" "sleep", but you'll be surprised by some of the ways they use them.

It was just really nice to be able to understand what they needed before they were old enough to formulate words. And no, it doesn't stunt their speech. Of course always keep talking even as you use the signs, they will too.

[JAG]

What Autumn said. Both our kids learned sign language and they were both able to use it to communicate with us before they could say the words, which was very helpful.

[Coffee Warlord]

Things you never thought you'd say...then you became a parent for 200 Alex,

"We do not eat dinner with a sock in our hand."

[Lathum]

My 2 year old son has been going through a hard core Mommy phase to the point of where I am getting down about it at times. When he is alone with me we are totally cool but at soon as mommy is around he completely rejects me. Cries when I get home from work, wont give me hugs before bed, totally uncooperative with diaper changes.

This morning my wife and I were both going to his room with him to get him ready for daycare and he turned around to me and said, go back Daddy, and pointed towards the den. It ripped my heart out.

The rarional side of me knows it is a phase, but it still sucks and makes me question if I could be doing something differently.

[chesapeake]

My 2 year old daughter is going through the same phase in exactly the way you describe. If Mommy is in the house, she will do everything she can to avoid me and get to her. My 6 year-old went through the same phase in reverse. It drove my wife to tears on more than one occasion, but she did grow out of it.

Keep listening to your rational side. It is correct. You'll still feel pretty bummed out, but it will help you to find your patience and hold your temper when your son is kicking off the pants you just spent 5 minutes getting on him.

Now I just need to take my own advice. It's very frustrating.

[Lathum]

My 2 year old daughter is going through the same phase in exactly the way you describe. If Mommy is in the house, she will do everything she can to avoid me and get to her. My 6 year-old went through the same phase in reverse. It drove my wife to tears on more than one occasion, but she did grow out of it.

Keep listening to your rational side. It is correct. You'll still feel pretty bummed out, but it will help you to find your patience and hold your temper when your son is kicking off the pants you just spent 5 minutes getting on him.
Now I just need to take my own advice. It's very frustrating.

ding ding ding ding

[DaddyTorgo]

Trying to be rational - is there something that they both really like that your spouses are willing to cede to you to be "your thing?" A treat of some sorts?

And I don't necessarily mean food...but like...say...going to the zoo, or taking a bath or brushing their teeth? That way you can kind of make that your like "special time" and they start to associate you with something they like again.

I dunno...I'm not a parent. I tend to approach these things too logically probably.

[Lathum]

Trying to be rational - is there something that they both really like that your spouses are willing to cede to you to be "your thing?" A treat of some sorts?

And I don't necessarily mean food...but like...say...going to the zoo, or taking a bath or brushing their teeth? That way you can kind of make that your like "special time" and they start to associate you with something they like again.

I dunno...I'm not a parent. I tend to approach these things too logically probably.

You are logical, the two year old isn't. There really is no rhyme or reason why or when they explode. It just happens and you go with it. They will love something one day and the next scream bloody murder about it.

[MacroGuru]

It's a phase and it happens, all 3 of my kids have gone through it and will cycle through it at all times. My 6 year old is a "momma's boy" right now while my 15 year old is a "Daddy's girl". My 11 year old is more a daddy's boy than a momma's boy but he switches it up depending on his mood.

I almost felt like as a parent I was being punished for working and being away from home. But in the end I know they love me and they do the little things that show that even though I was kicked out of the room and not allowed to get them dressed or tucked into bed.

[Autumn]

My 2 year old son has been going through a hard core Mommy phase to the point of where I am getting down about it at times. When he is alone with me we are totally cool but at soon as mommy is around he completely rejects me. Cries when I get home from work, wont give me hugs before bed, totally uncooperative with diaper changes.

This morning my wife and I were both going to his room with him to get him ready for daycare and he turned around to me and said, go back Daddy, and pointed towards the den. It ripped my heart out.

The rarional side of me knows it is a phase, but it still sucks and makes me question if I could be doing something differently.

That is hard. It's definitely a phase, both my boys went through it at that same time. I was just with a kid this weekend who was doing the same thing and I remembered how that had been. They get over it. I remember distinctly when my oldest did, because I was putting him to bed and he told me, "I used to hate you and love mom, but now I love both of you."

[Autumn]

I almost felt like as a parent I was being punished for working and being away from home. But in the end I know they love me and they do the little things that show that even though I was kicked out of the room and not allowed to get them dressed or tucked into bed.

We have a home business and share the parenting, and especially with my first son I spent exactly as much time with him as his mom did. And I got the same treatment. It's rough, but it seems to have nothing to do with the way your household works.

[Lathum]

We have a home business and share the parenting, and especially with my first son I spent exactly as much time with him as his mom did. And I got the same treatment. It's rough, but it seems to have nothing to do with the way your household works.

Wife and I both work and spend about the same time with him. I think it has been worse recently because she was away for a week for work and it was just him and I. I think it stirred up some seperation anxiety/ neediness for him. He was great with me while she was away.

[MacroGuru]

Wife and I both work and spend about the same time with him. I think it has been worse recently because she was away for a week for work and it was just him and I. I think it stirred up some seperation anxiety/ neediness for him. He was great with me while she was away.

Yeah, I am willing to bet that is what it is...He loves you, let him get his hooks back into mommy again and he will be back to his old self....

[Poli]

Checking in. Finally.

[Poli]

Ordered a rocking chair today.

Nearly got peed on. Baby wipe cover during diaper change for the win. Yesterday the little guy nearly hit me with the poop. Who knew poop could be a projectile??

[Coffee Warlord]

Who knew poop could be a projectile??

Every parent. :)

[Poli]

1 month old today. Hit me with a little pee for the first time. Didn't realize he was peeing under the wipe until I had lifted it too much.

[RendeR]

Every parent. :)




QFT!

[finketr]

1 month old today. Hit me with a little pee for the first time. Didn't realize he was peeing under the wipe until I had lifted it too much.

Congratulations! Been down that path before.

My child is 49 weeks old today. 3 more weeks + 2 days until his first birthday. He's in clutchy/holding onto daddy now. So cool.

[Prinzar]

1 month old today. Hit me with a little pee for the first time. Didn't realize he was peeing under the wipe until I had lifted it too much.
I've managed to avoid this with all 3 of my children. It's like a formula 1 pitstop to try and avoid any accidents, but all 3 still get my wife when she does changes :D

I've only just checked in this forum and noticed this thread for the first time. A brief into, I'm a dad of 3. Lily-Ann is a 3.5 year old giant with Rett Syndrome (so I'm a full time carer for her), Lewis is 2.5, also a giant, and a total monster, yet a sweetheart too. And I've also got a nearly 4 month old son, Joseph, who has just started the giggle stage after major problems with milk & soya allergies

[Poli]

I've avoided it the past two weeks but I've been out of town for 10 of those days. Love this little dude sleeping beside me like no other.

Crazy. I never want to coach football again unless he's there with me somehow.

[Poli]

And welcome to the thread, Prinzar.

[JonInMiddleGA]

About 11 hours from now, I will officially have a high school student.

God help us all through the next 720 days of class.

[hoopsguy]

Congrats, Jon. I'm about 2.5 days out on our little girl starting kindergarten.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Congrats, Jon. I'm about 2.5 days out on our little girl starting kindergarten.

Blink twice, maybe three times and you'll be where I am tonight.

But tbh, your deal is a lot tougher than mine. First day of pre-k was one of the toughest days I've had.

[Poli]

Davin and my first night alone. My wife returned to work a few hours ago. May the Lord have mercy on my soul.

[hoopsguy]

Over the weekend I got to see my daughter play in her first competitive sporting event.

I signed an agreement saying that they don't keep score, however her team lost 8-5. Addie scored three goals in the loss, and the only thing slowing her down from doing more damage was 90+ degree heat. She runs full throttle all the time (they all do at five, right?) and she was exhausted after a couple end-to-end runs on the miniature field.

So many thoughts on what the team could do differently, but since I'm not a coach I'll do my very best to just shut up and let the coaches coach. And maybe try to work on something this week after practice with my daughter to see if I can help her convert another chance or two in the future.

[Poli]

Enjoyed seeing that on Facebook. What a moment!

[AnalBumCover]

At 18 months, Ashley has now entered the "whining" phase. Not quite crying, but not exactly content either. She's really testing our limits right now.

[Autumn]

It's startling how the noises they make can just drive you crazy in a very primitive button-pushing sense. Grab hold and bear down.

[Poli]

I got pooped on through no fault of my own.

[hoopsguy]

With my five-year old daughter, the button-pushing now goes both ways. My wife has been impressed/awed by my ability to control her behavior in this manner, but it is something I feel a little bit evil doing so it is pretty damn rare that I exercise the option.

[WSUCougar]

Hey, guys. Been awhile.

My son Drew is now in the 5th grade, and just turned 11. With some AIDS awareness material and sex education on the horizon at school, my wife and I felt it was time I had "The Talk" (cue sinister music) with him. So I did.

I told him up front that it was going to be a "weird discussion" and that laughing and any questions he had were okay. I expected it to be very difficult...but it wasn't. I took the casual conversation angle, and left nothing unsaid. I asked him what he knew, then covered the whole spectrum: anatomy, slang, sexual acts, STDs, even masturbation. There were some giggles and priceless facial expressions.

Overall, it ended up being something of a transitional moment for us. Obviously, but I mean more about our relationship as father and son. Pretty cool.

[Coffee Warlord]

And on the other age bracket of parenting, poor kid is on the last push of teething, with the big back molars coming through, and not loving life.

[finketr]

matthew's 15 months old thursday... walking around everywhere.. likes climbing the stairs outside the apparment... babbles to himself.. squees like a dolphin sometimes...

totally awesome.

[AnalBumCover]

And on the other age bracket of parenting, poor kid is on the last push of teething, with the big back molars coming through, and not loving life.
With mine being born within a month of yours, I usually monitor your posts here as a signal of milestones to come. And this post duly explains the constant drooling, the chewing of the back of her baby spoon, the picky eating, and overall whining over every little thing that she wants.

[Coffee Warlord]

With mine being born within a month of yours, I usually monitor your posts here as a signal of milestones to come. And this post duly explains the constant drooling, the chewing of the back of her baby spoon, the picky eating, and overall whining over every little thing that she wants.

Yyyyyyyep. :) EXACTLY what we've enjoyed lately.

[finketr]

With mine being born within a month of yours, I usually monitor your posts here as a signal of milestones to come. And this post duly explains the constant drooling, the chewing of the back of her baby spoon, the picky eating, and overall whining over every little thing that she wants.

dude, she's a girl.

[AnalBumCover]

dude, she's a girl.
Good one. :lol:

[Poli]

Davin has been awesome. Just over 5 months old now. He's smiling and giggling now. A few days ago he figured out how to best work out in his jumper. The past two days he's spent at least 20 minutes in it jumping up and down constantly.

Best thing to ever happen to me, no doubt about it.

[AnalBumCover]

...and out of nowhere, Ashley now knows how to say "NO!"

as in:
"Okay, time to put your toys away." "NO!"
"Let's get you undressed for bath time." "NO!"

[AnalBumCover]

Dola.

My daughter ratted me out to Mommy the other day.

She was reaching out to a Christmas tree ornament, you know, one of those glass ball types. I flicked her elbow with my finger to keep her from grabbing it and possibly injuring herself. She immediately runs to Mommy, crying "owwwiee" and holding her arm. Mommy ask her what happened. Ashley points right at me and says, "Daddy."

[WSUCougar]

Cool part: Attended the winter concert tonight to watch my son, who plays violin, and the rest of the 4th-5th-6th grade musicians.

Not-so-cool part: Have you ever had to actually listen to 4th-5th-6th grade musicians?

[Autumn]

Yes, over and over and over again.

[DanGarion]

T minus 5 months till we have a girl running our world.

[finketr]

congratulations, Dan!

our little guy is a climber.

[Coffee Warlord]

Kid's in total mommy mode right now. Mommy has to do EVERYTHING, and he throws a mini fit if I try and do anything, or if mommy isn't in visual sight when he knows she's home.

[Poli]

Davin's 2 days shy of 7 months now. He's scooting toward anything with a wire...lamp, television, whatever. He gets in pushup position quite a bit, sometime flat footed.

He's meeting his grandpa, my stepdad, for the first time tomorrow. We're driving down to see him. He was recently diagnosed with emphysema and may have some skin cancer. He's 72 so I'm concerned there may not be more opportunities for him with his grandpa.

[Lathum]

Kid's in total mommy mode right now. Mommy has to do EVERYTHING, and he throws a mini fit if I try and do anything, or if mommy isn't in visual sight when he knows she's home.

yup, went through it a while back. He still does it sometimes and has reverted quite a bit since we moved, but it gets better.

That being said I am scared at what may happen when his baby sister shows up in May.

[Coffee Warlord]

Oh god.

He can get out of his crib now.

[Passacaglia]

Possibly stupid question -- have you lowered the mattress?

[finketr]

ours can climb/fall into the bathtub. can't quite reach the crib rail with his foot yet, but he climb every other damn thing in the apartment. :)

also, he pooped so much sometime during the night/this morning he had it in his hair! emergency bathtime

[Coffee Warlord]

Possibly stupid question -- have you lowered the mattress?

Oh how I wish it was that simple. Yeah, it's as low as it could go.

[Passacaglia]

Oh how I wish it was that simple. Yeah, it's as low as it could go.

Yeah, I got your kid's age wrong. I thought he was around the same age as my youngest (who are still in cribs on the highest level), but I looked back and realized he's closer to my oldest (who is in a crib on the lowest level).

[Coffee Warlord]

Yep. He's officially 2 as of today, actually!

[Lathum]

Oh god.

He can get out of his crib now.

I recommend a crib tent. Our son could get out around 14 months and it worked like a charm. Really easy to set up and install.

Our problem now is two fold. He throws a fit if we leave the room after putting him to bed, have to sit in there until he is either asleep or very close. Then he almost always gets up between 4-5 and comes and gets in our bed, which makes sleeping impossible.

[Lathum]

also, he pooped so much sometime during the night/this morning he had it in his hair! emergency bathtime

haha

[Passacaglia]

Yep. He's officially 2 as of today, actually!

Happy birthday! And, to make you jealous, my oldest who's still in the crib turns 3 next month. :p

[JAG]

Our problem now is two fold. He throws a fit if we leave the room after putting him to bed, have to sit in there until he is either asleep or very close. Then he almost always gets up between 4-5 and comes and gets in our bed, which makes sleeping impossible.

I can relate to those issues having dealt with a similar thing with our youngest. What worked for me is I basically just decided to stop cold turkey at a convenient time (started on a Friday night when I knew we had no travel plans for a while and so it wouldn't disrupt sleeping schedule during the week). The first night there was a lot of screaming and only fell asleep after becoming exhausted (I may have had to put her back in the bed a couple times, I can't recall) and it was pretty awful. The next night wasn't so bad and it kept improving. Things have been great ever since (this was like a year ago).

As for the climbing into bed, I would just walk him back to his room after maybe a bathroom trip and a small sip of water. I also can't sleep with our youngest in the bed for what it's worth (hellacious kicker).

Good luck, hope you can break him of those habits before your daughter is born. I forgot how time consuming newborns were until I had one again.

[finketr]

Yep. He's officially 2 as of today, actually!

Happy birthday!

I recommend a crib tent. Our son could get out around 14 months and it worked like a charm. Really easy to set up and install.

Our problem now is two fold. He throws a fit if we leave the room after putting him to bed, have to sit in there until he is either asleep or very close. Then he almost always gets up between 4-5 and comes and gets in our bed, which makes sleeping impossible.

Yeah, we did the cold turkey on a weekend approach and it took a couple of nights to get him to fall asleep on his own.


I can relate to those issues having dealt with a similar thing with our youngest. What worked for me is I basically just decided to stop cold turkey at a convenient time (started on a Friday night when I knew we had no travel plans for a while and so it wouldn't disrupt sleeping schedule during the week). The first night there was a lot of screaming and only fell asleep after becoming exhausted (I may have had to put her back in the bed a couple times, I can't recall) and it was pretty awful. The next night wasn't so bad and it kept improving. Things have been great ever since (this was like a year ago).

As for the climbing into bed, I would just walk him back to his room after maybe a bathroom trip and a small sip of water. I also can't sleep with our youngest in the bed for what it's worth (hellacious kicker).

Good luck, hope you can break him of those habits before your daughter is born. I forgot how time consuming newborns were until I had one again.

after a couple of months we took a trip and we were all sleeping in the same hotel room and that kicked him into the crying for 15-20 minutes before falling alseep from exhaustion and having to be in the room so he'd fall asleep.

Our LG is 18 months on Friday.

[Lathum]

He never had any issues until we moved and had been a challenge since. I've tried bringing him back to his room on the middle of the night and he throws himself on the ground and screams bloody murder.

[finketr]

He never had any issues until we moved and had been a challenge since. I've tried bringing him back to his room on the middle of the night and he throws himself on the ground and screams bloody murder.

ayup.

well, does so from his crib...

but, my little guy when it's time for bed will satnd up and put his face against mine when i lean over to rub his belly for a few minutes..

i, of course, fall for it and pick him up and rock and sing to him for a few minutes before putting him back.

[Poli]

Davin's crawling now. I feel fortunate. He sleeps through most nights. By most, I mean he might wake in the middle of the night twice a month. My wife, surprisingly to me, insisted after a few days of him being home that Davin sleep in his crib and in his room.

He's been gold since about a month old.

[Lathum]

Davin's crawling now. I feel fortunate. He sleeps through most nights. By most, I mean he might wake in the middle of the night twice a month. My wife, surprisingly to me, insisted after a few days of him being home that Davin sleep in his crib and in his room.

He's been gold since about a month old.

We were the same way, none of that co sleeping shit. Worked great until he became more independant.

[PilotMan]

I needed someplace other than Facebook to brag on how awesome my kid is.

My middle son, Zachary, is in 5th grade in the local public school and has had quite a year. He started the year in accelerated math and english, and has maintained solid grades in those classes. He has averaged A's and B's all year.

He was recognized for scoring distinguished (state benchmarks, test given last year) in all his classes except language arts where he was proficient. He only missed distinguished by 2 points, and only 3 or 4 kids in the school achieved that level.

He was the primary designer for his schools Lego league, which doesn't sound that tough, but was only sponsored by lego, and was really a robotics competition using the lego mindspark platform. They competed as a school against much older kids in the regional competition for the first time, (4th through 8th grade), and took 11th place out of 32 teams, just missing the cut off for state competition. They also beat the only middle school from our school district, where he is going next year.

In his state standards tests he scored in the 99th percentile in the state in Science, and scores at a high school level for math and reasoning. He was selected to be in the Gifted curriculum for Science earlier this year and has needed more and more challenging work as he hasn't been really tested with it.

Today, he presented electricity and circuits to the class as the teacher instead of having to do the regular class work with the rest of the kids.

He is hoping to become an engineer. He loves the designwork of Frank Lloyd Wright. He is very "green" oriented. He builds very advanced houses in minecraft for his age. He told me he took a test designed to evaluate survival skills in minecraft over 3 game days. He said he got a B+, which he told me was a level a teenager should get. He turns 11 in 2 weeks.

He takes all of this totally in stride, like it's no big deal. I assure you it is to me. I am beyond proud of him and want nothing more than to continue to encourage him and watch him progress through his life.

[Coffee Warlord]

We were the same way, none of that co sleeping shit. Worked great until he became more independant.

Yeah, I won that battle. He never slept in our room, from day 1. She actually admitted it was the right call.

[Autumn]

Ours slept in our bed for years. The nice part was none of this drama, they just slept. If they woke up, my wife would roll over and nurse them and they'd both be asleep in seconds. It wasn't perfect, certainly, it was at times difficult to sleep with a baby in bed, but the nice thing was never having to get up, so it worked out.

[finketr]

In his state standards tests he scored in the 99th percentile in the state in Science, and scores at a high school level for math and reasoning. He was selected to be in the Gifted curriculum for Science earlier this year and has needed more and more challenging work as he hasn't been really tested with it.


PilotMan,

yay!

Bold: Sad statement on our educational system?

[Coffee Warlord]

Signs I'm going to hell....

I just taught my son to say "Daddy is my god now!"

[AnalBumCover]

Signs I'm going to hell....

I just taught my son to say "Daddy is my god now!"

I must be doing it wrong. Last night I got my daughter to say "Come on", as in "Cahmmaaaaaaahhnnnn!"

[Lathum]

My son learned his last name last night, was pretty cool to hear him say it

[finketr]

18 months old: 33 inches, 27 lbs 7 ozs. 80-85th %tile.
all 16 teeth are healthy.
all healthy.

hates shots. cried almost as bad as the six-set at 1 year checkup.

[Lathum]

Last night wife and I decided no more of this nonsense. He was in our bed at 1:00 AM and moved around, kicked, turned sideways, etc...all night until 5 AM when he decided he wanted to get up.

We both woke up exhausted, her more then I because she is 7 months pregnant on top of it all. We decided if he is going to keep up awake anyway we may as well fight the good fight and try to get him in his room.

[JAG]

It usually took something to get me to the breaking point before I changed stuff up too. I'm sure it will work out ok after a little while for him to get used to it. If possible, maybe you can add something minor and not too time-consuming that he likes to the bedtime ritual (whether it's an extra story, new stuffed animal if he's into those, etc... Something to soften the blow of the change in what he's used to.

My oldest (6 years old) had surgery Tuesday to remove an extra adult tooth the dentist spotted a couple weeks ago. She was excited to have it done because she had a ridiculously loose tooth that had been bothering her for a while. After we got there and they started strapping on stuff like oxygen monitoring devices and covering her with a blanket / putting a hairnet on her, she wasn't nervous but started to get a bit wary (as did her father). I explained to her they were going to have to poke her in the arm to put the IV in and that it woukd feel uncomfortable after it was in, but it wouldn't hurt as much as her booster shot. Leaving the room soon after that was tough, but she apparently did well (she told me the surgeon said she handled it better than her adult patients did, which she thought was funny) and she was a little out of sorts for a few hours, but then she acted like her usual self and she's been doing great since then. They had to take out three baby teeth to get the adult tooth out, so she had a big present for the Tooth Fairy.

[Autumn]

Wow, that's rough, JAG. My youngest had a cavity filled recently, and they did the blood pressure cuff and a bunch of stuff on him. I was a bit worried he would freak out. But they doped him up first and after he had no idea I was even in the room with him. But anytime you watch something like that is tough. My oldest had his tonsils out and having them roll him away was hard even htough i knew it was a simple procedure.

[Lathum]

Glad she was such a trooper JAG.

So he waited until 4 AM to come into our room but eventually did. We decided the best course of action would be to let him fall asleep in our bed then carry him back in. He woke up when I picked him up, cried a bit when I put him in bed, then fell right asleep and stayed there the rest of the time.

We had trouble getting back to sleep because we were waiting for the inevitible wake up, but it never happened.

[finketr]

He woke up around around 1.45a or so this morning and i chanegd him since he was soaking... Tried to get him to sleep for a while and then my wife took over and slept next to him

[Coffee Warlord]

Well, attempt 3 of breaking him of the pacifier has gone amazingly well.

He's only used it for naps and bedtime for quite awhile - we had him off it for naps on two separate occasions, but he got sick and was so miserable we relented.

This time, we went all in, no more pacifier period. After 2 days, it's gone surprisingly well. He asked about it, we told him it broke, and he's pretty much slept without fuss.

[AnalBumCover]

Well, attempt 3 of breaking him of the pacifier has gone amazingly well.

He's only used it for naps and bedtime for quite awhile - we had him off it for naps on two separate occasions, but he got sick and was so miserable we relented.

This time, we went all in, no more pacifier period. After 2 days, it's gone surprisingly well. He asked about it, we told him it broke, and he's pretty much slept without fuss.
Hmm... I will be following along very closely at your updates on this. What happened on the first two attempts?

[Coffee Warlord]

Little backstory first.

He was about 1 or so when he first went off the pacifier at daycare, from a complete fluke. We forgot to pack it in his bag one day, and the daycare operator thought we were done with it for naps. Apparently, it worked out not bad there, though obviously I'll never know EXACTLY how it went. But, he hasn't used the pacifier for naps at daycare (4 days a week, basically) for probably close to a year now. Ever. Home, however...different story.

Both the first two attempts went about the same, actually. The first weekend we started (taking it away for naps), he basically cried himself to sleep. And let me tell you, he was very, very much not happy. He threw more of a fit than he did when he was cutting his first teeth. Heart wrenching. Weekend two worked out much better, actually. He did okay, fussed a small amount, went to sleep, not a major deal. After 3 weeks, it was okay - (there'd still be days when he fussed a bit about it, but nowhere near the hell that was the first couple days) we were getting ready to try it for the overnights.

Then he got sick, blah blah blah, you know the drill. He was feeling so miserable we had to cave and let him have it to calm him down. He needed the rest.

This time went amazingly smooth in comparison. He KINDA fussed that first nap, but not bad, didn't throw any kind of fit that night, and the second day/night he was just fine. He asked about it, but we just stuck with the story ( "sorry buddy, it's broke" ). Crossing our fingers, but it's been much, much easier.

Long story short, the first nap/whatever you nuke it, if your kid is anything like mind, is gonna suck. They're gonna wail and cry, you're gonna want to cave. My wife is/was the anti-pacifier nazi between us, and she wouldn't let me cave. I'da caved. The good news is, it got much, much better very quickly.

[Lathum]

It is amazing how fast they adapt. First night bringing my son back to his bed he woke up and pitched a fit, now he doesn't even move a muscle.

[Lathum]

Progress.

He stayed in his bed all night last night. Woke up at one point around 4 AM because he couldnt find his puppy, wife found it for him and he went right back into his bed.

His big boy bed comes Sunday, curious to see how it goes. Amazing to me he has already outgrown his racecar bed.

[Coffee Warlord]

So far so good on the pacifier. He's been sleeping / staying asleep better. He still asks about it before bedtime, but doesn't throw a fit when we say it's broken. (Though it still sounds like we took away his best friend.)

In other news...he's starting to show signs of wanting to use the potty. That would be rather lovely.

[Desnudo]

Progress.

He stayed in his bed all night last night. Woke up at one point around 4 AM because he couldnt find his puppy, wife found it for him and he went right back into his bed.

His big boy bed comes Sunday, curious to see how it goes. Amazing to me he has already outgrown his racecar bed.

We go back and forth on the continuum of baby in our bed, but assuming his room is safe, just stick him in there and let him cry it out. Takes 2-3 days of howling and holding your wife down from going to get him.

[Swaggs]

We go back and forth on the continuum of baby in our bed, but assuming his room is safe, just stick him in there and let him cry it out. Takes 2-3 days of howling and holding your wife down from going to get him.

Yup. And much easier to do before they start talking than after.

[Lathum]

Our son is almost 3. He just likes coming into our room so short of locking him in from the outside we need to be patient. First night in big boy bed tonight. He was so excited took a while to get him down. Hopefully he stays in there.

[Coffee Warlord]

Getting stuck in the middle of constant jabs between my wife and my folks (who live close and watch him about once a week), mainly over the boy, is getting very old, very fast.

Neither side wants to budge, nobody wants to hear they're wrong, I get to be the middle man and pretty have every side pissed at me.

[finketr]

Getting stuck in the middle of constant jabs between my wife and my folks (who live close and watch him about once a week), mainly over the boy, is getting very old, very fast.

Neither side wants to budge, nobody wants to hear they're wrong, I get to be the middle man and pretty have every side pissed at me.

my take on this, CW, if you care: Unless safety is an issue, your wife >> your parents.

latest issue: our boy used to sleep 8.00-9.00 pm -> 6.30 am (sharp, uncanny how great an alarm clock he is) with maybe one little whimper/cry in the middle of the night but goes right back to sleep. I am trying to get him back on the going to sleep between 8 and 9 schedule but we had some disruptions like a funeral to go 2 timezones away and my father-i-l is staying with us to help with some hell work schedules my wife has.

Lately, he has taken to waking up sometime between 2.00 and 4.00 am wailing and wailing non-stop. Check on him, get him settled down, leave, back to wailing non-stop...

[Coffee Warlord]

Ah, if it were only so clear cut as that. The latest in a long line of soul crushing insanity is over...yes...our boy's shoes.

Wife bought him a new pair. He's got my fat feet, he needs wides. These weren't (but we needed SOMETHING, since his old pair he could just slip off his feet at will, which got highly annoying in the car).

Folks ordered a pair of wides for him, after deciding those didn't fit. Fact is, they didn't fit, were really heavy, and he walked kinda funny with 'em.

Folks don't wanna hear they don't get to flat out decide shit like that. Wife doesn't wanna hear they are, in fact, correct about him needing shoes that fit properly. I'm the bad guy with my wife because I'm clearly not supporting her (wrong) decision, I'm the bad guy with my folks because I'm clearly not supporting their (over the line, but right) decision.

[Coffee Warlord]

Well, gotten one side to actually back down a bit. Wife is gonna take some more work.

[AnalBumCover]

We'll be converting her crib into a toddler bed this weekend. Wonder how she's gonna take it.

Also, her first big mishap yesterday. She was playfully jumping on our couch when I told her to sit down. She did, but onto an unstable couch pillow. She tipped over and hit her forehead on the leg of her small folding table. Luckily it was that and not the heavy coffee table. Nonetheless, she has a small welt on her forehead.

[AnalBumCover]

Any potty training tips anyone can offer?

[Coffee Warlord]

Other than jealousy, if yours is starting on it?

[Coffee Warlord]

That whole 'interest in using the potty' thing I mentioned a bit ago seems to be a passing fad.

[AnalBumCover]

Other than jealousy, if yours is starting on it?

Haven't started yet. We'll probably pick this or next weekend to do this.

So is the idea to go cold turkey on the diapers during the day and have her run around bare-assed?

[Coffee Warlord]

I have no idea. :)

[Warhammer]

Potty training is more parent training than child training. Also, each child is different.

With us, our first was almost potty trained at a year, but then we all got the flu and it all went out the window. When he was two, we took a weekend and let him run without a diaper, and when he needed to go, we sat him on the potty. He had a good idea of what it felt like when he needed to go, and without the comfort of the diaper, he was worried about going on the floor. He was also aware of what he was doing when he went. We had 2 maybe 3 messes to clean up and we were good to go.

Our second was more difficult. He was more than happy to fill a diaper. We tried pull ups and training underwear, but he had no problem being wet. It took about 2 weeks to finally get him fully trained. We had to put him on the can every hour for him to go. Finally, he figured out that if he went in the toilet, he didn't have to go sit every hour. We also made him "clean up" a couple of spots as well. With him, we realized that we had to be a bigger pain in his ass, than him taking the time to go to the bathroom. To this day (he' 8), we still have problems with him flushing the toilet and washing his hands.

[Lathum]

Mine will be 3 in 2 weeks and has a very passing interest. We give him a sticker if he goes, and he is starting to go at daycare, but still no breakthrough. I am worried with a new one coming in less than a month that he will revert back anyway.

[JeeberD]

If your kid like stickers, a "Potty Chart" where he gets stickers to put on it every time he uses the potty worked wonders for us. We're not 100% there yet, but we're damn close...we still get wet pull-ups overnight and the occasional accident during the day. Hopefully he doesn't regress with his new sister in the house...

[JonInMiddleGA]

Tonight is a happier & more relaxed atmosphere after my kid's tennis match than we've experience before.

After an 0-3 career start, the monkey is off his back after a solid 8-5 win in JV doubles action this afternoon. What you probably need to know before I say anything else is that he started playing less than 5 months ago. His initial goal was to simply minimize the suckage enough not to get cut. With that mission accomplished (narrowly I suspect), the losing was getting in his head at least a little bit I think.

So .... it was awfully nice for him to get not only a nice backhand passing shot down the line to wrap up their 7th win, but then to get the winner on match point with basically the same shot.

Yeah, proud daddy. Even more relieved really, that was a weight I didn't want him carrying around for 10-11 months since today was probably their final official match of the season.

Whew.

[JonInMiddleGA]

And, as a follow-up ... I'm even happier Monday night happened for my kid, otherwise tonight's 0-8 loss would probably have been quite demoralizing. Completely overmatched against a powerful sophomore from a Class 5A powerhouse (who looked like a probably #2 or #3 varsity singles player for 90% of the teams in our classification).

On the bright side, no notable injuries suffered during his match, so that's something at least.

[Poli]

Davin's trying to figure out the whole walking thing. Loving every minute of it!

[AnalBumCover]

Davin's trying to figure out the whole walking thing. Loving every minute of it!

I remember when Ashley finally figured it out. As she was walking from point A to point B, she tripped over a toy. But instead of falling over, she actually took a hop-step to regain balance! Was one of my proudest moments, right there.

[finketr]

Matthew's first sustained steps:

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/iZvKHSd6_Ig" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[JonInMiddleGA]

Wife & child are now back from the DMV ... despite the fact that he drove home.

God help us all, he's officially 15.

[Poli]

What is the deal with middle school kids attending a middle school 'prom'? When did this stuff start happening? I've got former youth football players posting all of these prom pictures, and it just has me thinking, "kid, you can't even drive yet."

[JonInMiddleGA]

What is the deal with middle school kids attending a middle school 'prom'? When did this stuff start happening? I've got former youth football players posting all of these prom pictures, and it just has me thinking, "kid, you can't even drive yet."

Started a few years ago, sometime after full cap-and-gown kindergarten graduations.

[Lathum]

It has been great having family from New Jersey around to help with the new addition, but it is time for them to go. Thankfully my parents leave today, the In Laws will be here until Sunday. Not that I don't love them, but I am ready to move on and get into a routine.

My in laws arrived 3 and a half weeks ago, my parents 2 and a half. Babay was born last Monday. They are all staying with us. House is big enough, everyone has their own room and bathroom, but it is impossible to get a routine down that works with all these people there.

Still, my Son is going to be crushed when they leave, he has really enjoyed having them around. My SIL and BIL arrive from London Saturday and stay until Thursday the 23rd. Will be fun to see them, but I will be glad that Memorial Day weekend will be just us.

[Izulde]

What is the deal with middle school kids attending a middle school 'prom'? When did this stuff start happening? I've got former youth football players posting all of these prom pictures, and it just has me thinking, "kid, you can't even drive yet."

I remember we had an 8th grade graduation dance. But it wasn't prom... not even close to it.

[finketr]

If you take your not-yet-potty trained toddler, and want to take them swimming.. Do you just use the water pants or put a diaper under them?

[Lathum]

Swim diaper and lining. I take my son all the time.

[AnalBumCover]

Yep. Swim diaper.

[finketr]

Yep.. worked great.. looks just like the lining of a regular diaper. He was very apprehensive and unhappy about the cool water, but after he was in, he's very happy and splashing around.

[Lathum]

My son has now realized the new baby isn't going anywhere and he has entered full blown " I want Mommy to do everything for me all the time" phase. Luckily he still goes to daycare, but it is maddening at night, especially if the baby needs to be fed during bedtime.

[JonInMiddleGA]

I don't know which is more amazing to me at the moment:
that kids ever survive HS today, or that parents ever survive HS today.

[sachmo71]

Wife & child are now back from the DMV ... despite the fact that he drove home.

God help us all, he's officially 15.

congrats! remind me to stay off the roads!:devil:

[finketr]

congrats! remind me to stay off the roads!:devil:

Remind to stay off the sidewalks!

[JonInMiddleGA]

Remind to stay off the sidewalks!

This might not be a bad idea. So far my nerves have managed to ride with him twice. Both times I've desperately wanted a drink immediately afterwards.

Considering that I frequently scuffle with the whole "will to live" thing anyway, this should tell you something. Right now turns, and the concept of turning in general, seems to be his greatest challenge.

[sachmo71]

did you slam on the invisible brakes? grab the top of the doorframe?

I am not looking forward to this in a few years.

[JonInMiddleGA]

did you slam on the invisible brakes? grab the top of the doorframe? I am not looking forward to this in a few years.

I sit in the back, hold onto the oh shit bar & try not to throw up.

[Coffee Warlord]

Why must my kid always scrape and bang his face, of all places?

Poor guy. Tripped on a step outside, has this hideous looking scrape on his temple. And then banged his head at the playground a day later, earning himself a nice bruise right on his forehead. Swear. Combine this with his perpetually bruised shins, I'm almost embarrased to take him anywhere - it looks like we abuse him.

[Lathum]

I feel like I spend every waking moment yelling at my 3 year old son, the kid listens as good as a fire hydrant.

[JonInMiddleGA]

I think my wife has lost the will to live ... she let him drive in the middle of downtown ATL today (down 75, thru the Grady Curve, out to I-20 and on to Conyers ... for those who know the area).

[Wolfpack]

Suicide by teen driver? :D

[Coffee Warlord]

My boy has officially graduated to a big boy bed.

More accurately, a crib with 3 rails and a small fence in the front instead of 4 rails. :)

[Lathum]

My 3 year old son just went potty, and as I am cleaning up the bathroom he runs away with no cloths on. No biggie. I then hear quite the commotion from my wife in the dining room. My son decided it would be funny to run to the table, pull a piece of shit from his ass, and put it on the table.

I'm sure we'll laugh about it someday.

[DaddyTorgo]

My 3 year old son just went potty, and as I am cleaning up the bathroom he runs away with no cloths on. No biggie. I then hear quite the commotion from my wife in the dining room. My son decided it would be funny to run to the table, pull a piece of shit from his ass, and put it on the table.

I'm sure we'll laugh about it someday.

:lol:

[Dodgerchick]

It's funny, as much as I wanted a break from the kids, now that they're in California the house is quiet and I don't like it. I miss my daughter's sarcastic sense of humor, and my son's obsession with license plates.

3 1/2 more weeks til we go pick them up. *sigh* :(

[JonInMiddleGA]

Dropped ours off in Chattanooga, TN for a 5 day tennis camp. No biggie & probably not quite noteworthy enough for this thread perhaps, except for what his regular coach down here did.

Put in a call to the guy running the camp (who he played against when he was at Auburn & clinic guy was at UT), had to be at least a half hour or more conversation (based on all the stuff the camp guy knew). The interest level from the camp director was obvious when my kid arrived, was very tuned in about him, upbeat, personalized, etc. etc.

That call had to be one of the nicest things any non-related adult has ever done for my kid.

[JeeberD]

I feel like I spend every waking moment yelling at my 3 year old son, the kid listens as good as a fire hydrant.

I'm glad to hear it's not just Bren. We've been working on listening to Mommy and Daddy, but it ain't going so hot...

[JonInMiddleGA]

Age 15 = terrible twos X 7.5

I'm gonna need a bail bondsman if things don't improve soon.

[Dodgerchick]

Age 15 = terrible twos X 7.5

I'm gonna need a bail bondsman if things don't improve soon.

Eesh, I'm seriously dreading when the kids reach that age.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Eesh, I'm seriously dreading when the kids reach that age.

I wish I had better news to report but, at least in my case, I think this past year has felt more like 3-4 years. By the time he heads to college I figure I'll be at least 80 years old (mentally/emotionally).

[Izulde]

I wish I had better news to report but, at least in my case, I think this past year has felt more like 3-4 years. By the time he heads to college I figure I'll be at least 80 years old (mentally/emotionally).

You'll match your profile pic then. :D

[Lathum]

my wife goes back to work next week and I am taking a month off to stay home with our daughter. Lately she has been flat out refusing a bottle, to the point where I am getting worried

[Autumn]

That sounds frustrating, Lathum. I know some people have to go through a big ordeal of finding just the right bottle type or just the right way of introducing it. Good luck.

[digamma]

I'm glad to hear it's not just Bren. We've been working on listening to Mommy and Daddy, but it ain't going so hot...

So, two thoughts...

There is a book called "How to Talk So your Kids will Listen, and Listen so your Kids will Talk." Or something to that effect. Some of it is over the top and goody goody, but the general message, I think, is very good. We have pulled a few ideas from there which are very effective. Probably the most effective is to give choices when you want them to do something.

For example, we often have trouble getting my son out of the bath tub and getting on with his bedtime routine. We've essentially fixed the problem by offering him a choice of how he wants to get out of the tub. Instead of back and forth of time to get out, I want to stay in, blah blah, it is, OK, tonight do you want to hop out of the tub like a bullfrog or fly out like a seahawk. He almost always takes a second to think about it, makes a decision and acts on it.

Second thing is we have a short list of rules which he's memorized. Rule number one is listen to mommy and daddy. There are a couple of fun ones (take care of the Ipad and one he made up about sharing a certain toy). But if he's not doing something, instead of the back and forth, we'll just say something like, Hey, bud, are you following rule number one? He's remarkably honest about it and will usually try to do better.

Obviously, each kid is different, but those two little tricks have worked really well for us.

[digamma]

dola...

And a fun story. My three year old has some sort of bug bite under his eye. Looks like he's packing a raspberry under his eye. Kind of sad.

Last night I was asking him if he remembered getting bitten or stung by a bug.

He says, "No, I'm not sure it was a bug who bit me."

I say, "Really? What do you think it was?"

He says, "I think maybe it was a dinosaur."

[Lathum]

haha

sounds like a big bug!

we also give our 3 year old choices and it works really well. We are about to start on chores and rules. We'll see how that works out.

[Masked]

So, two thoughts...

There is a book called "How to Talk So your Kids will Listen, and Listen so your Kids will Talk." Or something to that effect. Some of it is over the top and goody goody, but the general message, I think, is very good. We have pulled a few ideas from there which are very effective. Probably the most effective is to give choices when you want them to do something.



This has worked very well for me with my three year old. For example, as part of the bedtime routine, I ask him would he rather go to the bathroom or brush his teeth first. He quickly makes his decision, does whichever task he picked first, and will then do the second.

[Autumn]

Those techniques definitely help ... some. There's a bit of a honeymoon phase when they're younger where all these parenting techniques on behavior and eating, etc., work really well. Every time I talk to someone with only young kids they tell me how great their kids eat and behave because they do blah, blah and blah and I just smile and say, "Yep, I remember those days."

That said, even if it doesn't keep working really, it is the right technique to offer choices and open lines of communication. That's the parenting style which is shown to work best in the long run.

[AnalBumCover]

Anyone know how to get a 2yo to get back to sleeping by herself after having spent the last 3 weeks sleeping with mommy and daddy during the vacation?

[Lathum]

Anyone know how to get a 2yo to get back to sleeping by herself after having spent the last 3 weeks sleeping with mommy and daddy during the vacation?

We had some similar issues with my son and tried a bunch of different things. Basically we just praised him a lot on the nights he stayed in his room, and eventually he stopped coming in. Nothing else worked. Once they are out of the crib there is little that can be done.

[Autumn]

Yeah, I think it just takes patience. It may seem like it's going to take forever to get them readjusted, but soon you'll forget it even happened. I think most parenting challenges like this require continue pushing the issue the direction you want it, gently. If it doesn't work, wait a bit and try it again.

[WSUCougar]

My son Drew (age 11) is away at Boy Scout camp for the week. First time he's been away from home on his own for more than one night. So far so good, and I'm thinking he'll do fine. Not so sure about the wife...and the cat is definitely pissed off.

[Coffee Warlord]

And our first ER trip for our kid has now occured. Fell off the porch outside daycare straight into some bushes, got a little gash on his temple and a bunch of little scratches all over his face.

WHY IS IT ALWAYS THE FACE.

Little bit of superglue later, I have a daycare operator to ream. This is not the first injury he's had there, and I'm growing very weary of it. I understand he's 2.5, he's energetic, and gets into stuff. But it's gotten ridiculous.

[finketr]

And our first ER trip for our kid has now occured. Fell off the porch outside daycare straight into some bushes, got a little gash on his temple and a bunch of little scratches all over his face.

WHY IS IT ALWAYS THE FACE.

Little bit of superglue later, I have a daycare operator to ream. This is not the first injury he's had there, and I'm growing very weary of it. I understand he's 2.5, he's energetic, and gets into stuff. But it's gotten ridiculous.

I hear you... We had just sent 2-3 hours at the pool into the early evening with our two old. Got him his bottle of milk, left him upright and he tripped over something. A nice split skin issue at the place where the chin/lip indent is.. and a cut inside his mouth. That was very scary since he had blood in his mouth and over his teeth..

yikes,

[Coffee Warlord]

Really not looking forward to trying to find a new daycare. More I stew, the less I want him going back there. Sucks, 'cause the place was ultra convenient, and she's really good at teaching him - she just doesn't watch him as well as she should.

[AnalBumCover]

I'm dancing in the streets. Ashley is finally potty trained.

[JonInMiddleGA]

And our first ER trip for our kid has now occured.

Ah yes, I remember it well.

He was maybe, I dunno, 3ish. Was on the couch in the den being silly with the daughter of a friend, maybe 5 or 6 y/o. Somehow my child manages to topple off the couch ... right into the corner of a round coffee table. You wouldn't think that's exactly possible but it was. The rounded edge caught him perfectly in/on his eyebrow & he bled like a heavyweight.

Straight to the E.R. where we had our first encounter with the new procedures designed (presumably) to spot abuse. The doctor asks our son how he got hurt - while sternly motioning us with his arm to not answer - and my 3 year old, through the tears says

"I was clowning."

[digamma]

My wife is out of town for 10 days with our little one, so it is just our three year old and me. I'm not sure what to do with myself. I put him to bed and have my evening free. I had forgotten how easy he is compared to the baby.

[Dodgerchick]

Really not looking forward to trying to find a new daycare. More I stew, the less I want him going back there. Sucks, 'cause the place was ultra convenient, and she's really good at teaching him - she just doesn't watch him as well as she should.

Not sure how many of you know but our son is on the autism spectrum. When he was 3 years old he still didn't communicate and the daycare provider took advantage and would leave him with a soaked, heavy diaper. I was so pissed I went back with the wet, soiled diaper and went off on them. My God, I was fuming. I said my last words, pulled the diaper out of the baggie and showed it to them. I'm not what you say a diplomatic person. I put the diaper on their desk and said, "Look at it. Look at how heavy this thing is and he was soaking in it, wtf?" My son and I got up and left the diaper on their desk.

This daycare was right up the street. Super convenient. Anyway, moral of the story is - Convenience isn't always the best route to go, we learned this the hard way with 3 awful babysitters. It's worth it to take the time and find someone good. I'm not saying drive 20 miles to drop your son off, but find someone good and make sure you take him with you... go off his reaction. Does he seem interested? Does he cling on to you? go off their vibes, kids are very very smart.

Best of luck, I know it's a pain in the ass but if he's had more than 1 injury, that's 1 too many.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Son's school has resumed the search for a new headmaster (last year's search to replace the beloved long-time HM that retired did not produce a successful candidate).

With only two years left to go, it's a bit unnerving to me. 1st of four finalists has been announced (one per week through October) with visits & interviews coming up. The first candidate would either be a lousy fit or an agent of change (dramatically different background to our current environment), something that the initial job posting VERY clearly stated was not what was wanted.

I f'n hate transitions like this.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Roles (positions? I dunno the right word) announced for this year's Athens Academy mock trial team.

I dropped off a sophomore at 2pm.
I picked up a defense attorney at 3pm.

Those who know him best may note the irony in his role, considering that his sociopolitical alignment probably makes him a candidate for "Most Likely To Become A Hanging Judge" ;)

[JonInMiddleGA]

Just finished reading Will's homework essay (something I don't do a lot of, 'cause I tend to nitpick). The task was to find an op-ed piece they disagreed with on some issue and then rebut it. I won't quote him nor go into the content much since it's still in an early draft state but ... let's just say that I'm probably not the most conservative member of our household at this point ;) And politicians (or parties) who sell out their constituents may not want to count on his vote in a few years either. #Proud

[JonInMiddleGA]

Roles (positions? I dunno the right word) announced for this year's Athens Academy mock trial team.

I dropped off a sophomore at 2pm.
I picked up a defense attorney at 3pm.

This morning, after nearly four months of preparation, we dropped off a rookie defense attorney.

This afternoon we came home with a defense attorney named Outstanding Attorney of his very first competitive round. He actually got higher scores (3 judge panel) in Round 2 but an opposing (faux) lawyer had an even higher mark.


Most importantly, team finished 3rd overall to survive & advance into the District round three weeks from today. They'll open against the #2 seed from another region head-to-head in knockout play (6 team bracket) with one team eventually advancing to the state competition in March.

[digamma]

Teacher: You know, Will, you're a good looking kid.

Son (3): Yes, I've been eating a lot of carrots.

(It may take a few minutes, but you'll get there.)

(And good luck to Athens next week.)

[Lathum]

Question for the parents of FOFC.

My wife has been leaning pretty hard on me about a third kid. While I am not opposed to it I have some pretty big concerns.

We currently have an almost 4 year old boy and a 10 month old girl so obviously our hands are full most days. We have no family within 600 miles so there is almost no outside assistance with the exception of a few very close friends who are like aunts and uncles to my kids. Adding a third would make us that much busier without any help.

Financially it isn't a problem, we combined make a very good living, and would likely get a nanny if we added #3, and if not our oldest is going to school soon.

My biggest concern is we are both 38, and I worry about the health of a new baby. Now I know we have parents with special needs kids here, and I want to be sensitive to their situation, but at the risk of sounding selfish, I don't want to decide to have a 3rd kid and have it be born with a lifelong disability. I feel we have 2 perfectly healthy kids and it would almost be tempting fate. My wife also lost 2 pregnancies between our first and second, so there could be some issues with it taking. I'm not sure I want to be 60 with kids living at home and having to pay for 3 college educations and at least one wedding.

My other concerns aren't as serious. My concern if the dynamic of 3 kids opposed to 2. With a family of 4 everything is a neat package, adding a 3rd seems like it would change the logistics of a lot of things. We would have to replace at least one car, etc...

There is also the overwhelming feeling of starting it all over again, the sleepless nights, diapers, etc...but I always tell myself we have been through that twice, a third time wouldnt be a big deal.

The positives are obvious. Kids are awesome, and no matter how tiring and patience testing they can be, they are the best thing in my life, so why not want another?

Right now I am really on the fence, with the added feeling of not wanting to disappoint my wife, while not having another kid just to make her happy.

So parents of FOFC, thoughts?

[chesapeake]

I was 39 and my wife was 40 when my second daughter was born. We asked her doctor about the risks before we made a decision. My recollection is that although it is several times more likely that there could be complications or problems developing with the fetus, it is still a fraction of a percent. I'd recommend having the same conversation with your doctor so you are making that portion of the decision based on the best available science.

I can't help you on the 2 kids v 3 kids; we stopped at 2. We didn't want to be outnumbered by the rabble.

[JonInMiddleGA]

I guess it's as much a matter of personal preference, for me the notion of three sounds like a nightmare that would be the death of me ... but my favorite milestones of the last couple of decades include the last diaper change, the last car seat day, the last use of a stroller, etc, so there's clearly a lot of YMMV there.

I will tell you, fwiw, that my wife was 39 at the time and it was definitely a concern throughout what was (really) a relatively uncomplicated pregnancy. On the other hand, we learned years later that he was born with a minor "birth defect" (doctors & therapists word choice, not mine, so take it up with them if you don't care for it) in terms of his muscle memory, something that's hampered him with everything from athletics to handwriting. No official cause of course but it's hard not to think that our ages may have played a role in that, something that it's hard not to feel some responsibility for.

From a more practical standpoint, being on the older end of the parenting spectrum means that we seem to have a fair bit less energy than some of the more traditionally aged ones, especially as he's gotten older & the sheer time demands of being in four places a day as you run from activity to activity ramp up. I know other people do it (as you would be) with an even larger brood of course, I'm just saying that it seems to weigh a little more heavily on those of us with extra years/mileage.

[flere-imsaho]

We went into it with the plan that we'd try one, and if that went OK, we'd do two, but we'd be stopping at two no matter what. So now that we have two, three's never really been on our radar, and now that the younger one is 2.5 I'll echo what you said, Lathum, about "starting all over again". They say you forget how tough those first few months (especially) were, but I haven't. :D

On the medical front, we were both 38 when we had the second one. We did all the tests possible, including CVS, to make sure there weren't going to be any issues. I guess that's the best one can do.

I'm kinda glad we had kids "later", though. I'm glad I had my 20s and half of my 30s to do the "stuff I wanted to do". Yes, as Jon says, I have less energy for it now than I would have had in my 20s, but on the other hand, I have more money, and I've found that when it comes to kids, money can smooth over a lot of difficulties (day care, baby sitters, medication, toys, etc...). But, and here's the important part, everyone's different, and no more so than in how they handle having children.

[JonInMiddleGA]

One of the major parenting milestones passed today ... as Will became the state's newest legally licensed 16 year old driver. Good thing I'm going bald otherwise I'd end up really gray really quick I imagine.

https://scontent-a-atl.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc1/t1.0-9/10245454_10202134155024323_3683074930659468540_n.jpg

https://scontent-a-atl.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/t1.0-9/10259332_10202134156024348_1925791729114687663_n.jpg

The backstory on the car is actually pretty nice so I'm going to tell it. Unbeknownst to us until a few months ago, my late father-in-law had told his wife several years before he passed away that "I may not be here by the time Will turns 16 so when the time comes, you make sure you get him a car he really wants, from both of us" ... and that's exactly what she did.

[Wolfpack]

Sweet car, but why is he rocking the Deacs hat? Secret desire to go to Wake Forest over Tech or Tennessee or something?

(Dear Lord, you think he's ready? I'm sure you've got a nice long list of "I will crush and melt this car if you do this" stipulations, right? :D )

[JonInMiddleGA]

Sweet car, but why is he rocking the Deacs hat? Secret desire to go to Wake Forest over Tech or Tennessee or something?

Tech isn't even remotely on his radar, definitely not a STEM kid ;)

UT is a 2nd tier option at most for him at this point, only really somewhere he'd consider if he ended up accepted for their Honors college. (Similarly -- to my wife's chagrin -- that's about the same as he'd say about Alabama)

Wake is probably the current leader with him, although he goes to a session in Atlanta tomorrow for his other very strong personal favorite (school-wise & geographically): Miami.

(Dear Lord, you think he's ready? I'm sure you've got a nice long list of "I will crush and melt this car if you do this" stipulations, right? :D )

Oh believe me, I'm like Santa Claus on that shit already ... I'm making a list & checking it twice :D

[JonInMiddleGA]

Have mercy the boy nearly got my ass killed, for real, earlier tonight. Left turned directly into the path of a van that was doing about 40 mph or so. Luckily the van driver was paying attention & had great reflexes.

Nothing more than a near miss ... but we've now had a lengthy conversation about the sudden discovery that he's nowhere near ready to drive on narrow city streets. Interstates? No problem. Left turns w/out an arrow? Major problem.

I'm really glad I went to the bathroom before we left the house.

[chesapeake]

Glad you made it home w/o becoming a hood ornament. I did something similar just after I got my license. Fortunately, the oncoming truck was going uphill, so he was able to stop in time. But I learned then that kids should never drive with just friends in the car.

[Wolfpack]

Eight years out of practice, but now all the memories are flooding back of what it's like to have a newborn again. Fortunately, she's got a pretty relaxed temperament so far and has done pretty well to find her hand in situations where mom isn't around to feed her. She has only had one really out-of-control crying jag so far and that was because she'd been in a car seat too long but we couldn't take her out yet, and even then she eventually cried herself to sleep, which was something unheard of with the other two when they were newborns.

So far, I'm finding I actually have been enjoying relearning what it's like to have such a little baby around. My wife begs to differ on some points, but it's not to do with the baby, but more how her body's handled late pregnancy and these early days afterwards, which would delve way into TMI territory to talk about. I'm sure my tune may change if the baby starts getting more cranky as she gets older, but for now, I'm totally in love with the little one. :D

[Coffee Warlord]

*twitches uncontrollably*
*mutters*
*jitters*

[AnalBumCover]

For the second straight night, my daughter gave up her bed-time pacifier on her own. And for the longest time we had been worrying about how to wean her from it without too much fuss. Then with the slightest bit of urging, she just put it down and said "I'm a big girl now."

[Umbrella]

My youngest kid graduated high school. I'm officially going to be an empty nester in a couple of months. She gave the opening speech at graduation, which was certainly a cool "proud papa" moment.

[panerd]

Well this is my first post in this thread. I was a single FOFC guy for about ten years and then have been lurking in this thread since I had my son 18 months ago. So my wife and I decided we wanted to have another little one to complete the panerd clan. Well life doesn't always work out as planned and we have twins on the way!

Not sure how to explain how I am feeling right now. Excited, bewildered, scared...

* Any parents of twins or of three kids within 2-3 years on here? My biggest concern is my wife's sanity when I go back to work and the lack of attention for our 2 year old once the twins are born.

* Any minivan owners on here? We love the stow and go of Dodge/Chrysler and are trying to figure out what positives other car companies offer.

[Wolfpack]

My oldest suffered a slightly gruesome freak injury Thursday night. She somehow fell while playing around in the back yard and wound up with a pinkie that quite obvious was not pointing in the same direction as the other fingers on her left hand and endured a rather lengthy ER visit to treat it. I had hoped it was just dislocated based on how it looked, but the X-rays showed it was also broken just above the knuckle I think. So, she's been in a rather big splint the whole time since and has been saddened that she can't do much because of it. We'll be seeing the ortho on Monday to get the long term cast/splint for it. Hope they give her something that will let her be a bit more active (including playing in the pool) while it heals or she's really going to be crabby about it.

[Coffee Warlord]

There's not much more horrifying than seeing a staple sticking out of your child's skull.

Long story short, attack of the coffee table, got a tiny little gash on the back of his head. We of course take him to the ER to get looked at, it's nothing serious, but he got 1 stable. You can't even see it unless you know where to look. And it's still awful to look at.

[Marmel]

Well this is my first post in this thread. I was a single FOFC guy for about ten years and then have been lurking in this thread since I had my son 18 months ago. So my wife and I decided we wanted to have another little one to complete the panerd clan. Well life doesn't always work out as planned and we have twins on the way!

Not sure how to explain how I am feeling right now. Excited, bewildered, scared...

* Any parents of twins or of three kids within 2-3 years on here? My biggest concern is my wife's sanity when I go back to work and the lack of attention for our 2 year old once the twins are born.

* Any minivan owners on here? We love the stow and go of Dodge/Chrysler and are trying to figure out what positives other car companies offer.

I got a 6y/o, 4y/o and 16 month old. Just embrace the chaos. Make it a point to pay particular attention to the 2 year old (in our case, the middle child). Don't let the little things bother you. Help out when you get home from work. You won't always feel like it, but it helps to pack all three up and just get out of the house for a few hours. I'll take them to the mall and let them ride the merry-go-round, or play in the playscape for a bit. Or I'll take them to the grandparents. Or Toys R Us and leet them pick something out of the $1-$5 bins. Even as simple as taking them outside in your yard. Just give the wife some time to herself here and there will help.

I dreaded getting a minivan, but I bought a Honda Odyssey and I adore it. I'd buy one without kids! We never use the stow and go. The rest of the vehicle has so much space. And it is great for hauling things that you buy that normally you would have to have delivered or borrow a pick up truck.

We are at the point now, where the "bigs" can entertain the 15 month old for a bit. Just let them all play together and the wife and I do not constantly have our eyes on them.

No offense to single child parents (I'm an only child) but you have it easy until you have 2 or more! The 2nd one, in your case 2nd and 3rd, does not double the work. It is like a 10x multiplier. In our case, the 3rd one was easy and added no work.

[tarcone]

My 14 year daughter is away with a friend and her parents for a week. This is the 1st time for her. She was nervous about going. She has done weekends away, but not an entire week.
So far so good. Im happy she went, although a little nervous myself. But I trust the parents (obviously).
We took our 12 year old to a basketball camp in another state a couple weeks ago. It was 3 days long with a residence option. It is where I grew up, so we went the commuter route and stayed with my brother. It was an experiment to get her out of her comfort zone. The camp lasted about 9-11 hours a day. They fed them lunch and dinner. So she had to find people to hang with or not. She is somewhat outgoing, but gets into her comfort zone a little easily.
It worked on a grand scale I think.

So this has been a Summer of independence and growth for my daughters.

Man, they are growing up way to quick.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Got the "oh shit" phone call from the 16 y/o a few days ago

"{gasp} I hit a car {sob}"

He's fine, literally barely scuffed the paint on his front fender but put a perfectly placed dent in the back bumper of a brand new Rav4. Was on private property (where he's taking his SAT/ACT prep course), the victim was a student from his own school -- who couldn't have been nicer about the whole thing -- cops did their report thing but no charges thanks to the private property location.

Cost to us (since we don't have to get insurance involved) ... about $600.

edit to add: He misjudged the angle while trying to pull into a tight parking space. So, for the record, he's now hit a post/beam in the garage AND a parked car ...

Me: "They're stationary objects son, they're kinda hard to miss"
Him: "yeah, I know, that's why I can't seem to miss them"

Smartass kid ;)

[Lathum]

Well this is my first post in this thread. I was a single FOFC guy for about ten years and then have been lurking in this thread since I had my son 18 months ago. So my wife and I decided we wanted to have another little one to complete the panerd clan. Well life doesn't always work out as planned and we have twins on the way!





Grats!

My wife wants a third pretty badly and I am digging my heels in for fear of ending up with twins.

No advice on twinse per say, but when my daughter was born my son had just turned 3. What we did was make him a helper and think he was doing importan jobs, that got him involved.

Also, one thing we did that I think was huge, when he came to the hospital for the first time after the baby was born we made sure my wife and I weren't holding the new baby. I think it was important to reinforce that we were still mommy and daddy and the new baby hadn't taken his place. We also got a gift for him to bring to the hospital for her. I think those 2 things really started it out the right way. He now loves his sister and has almost no jealous or attention seeking moments.

Now that she is getting close to old enough to play with his stuff we'll see if it lasts.

[panerd]

I got a 6y/o, 4y/o and 16 month old. Just embrace the chaos. Make it a point to pay particular attention to the 2 year old (in our case, the middle child). Don't let the little things bother you. Help out when you get home from work. You won't always feel like it, but it helps to pack all three up and just get out of the house for a few hours. I'll take them to the mall and let them ride the merry-go-round, or play in the playscape for a bit. Or I'll take them to the grandparents. Or Toys R Us and leet them pick something out of the $1-$5 bins. Even as simple as taking them outside in your yard. Just give the wife some time to herself here and there will help.

I dreaded getting a minivan, but I bought a Honda Odyssey and I adore it. I'd buy one without kids! We never use the stow and go. The rest of the vehicle has so much space. And it is great for hauling things that you buy that normally you would have to have delivered or borrow a pick up truck.

We are at the point now, where the "bigs" can entertain the 15 month old for a bit. Just let them all play together and the wife and I do not constantly have our eyes on them.

No offense to single child parents (I'm an only child) but you have it easy until you have 2 or more! The 2nd one, in your case 2nd and 3rd, does not double the work. It is like a 10x multiplier. In our case, the 3rd one was easy and added no work.

Yes I completely agree with your "embrace the chaos" viewpoint I also figure if one of them starts really annoying me I can always move to the other two. :)

We ended up buying a minivan and I have to say it is fantastic. We have already made a semi-road trip (3 hour) and have a mini vacation coming up in a couple of weeks. Plus like you said I have used it for several Home Depot runs that would have required borrowing a friend's truck or my parents van in the past. If I could go back in time 16 year old panerd would have been driving one of these.

[panerd]

Grats!

My wife wants a third pretty badly and I am digging my heels in for fear of ending up with twins.

No advice on twinse per say, but when my daughter was born my son had just turned 3. What we did was make him a helper and think he was doing importan jobs, that got him involved.

Also, one thing we did that I think was huge, when he came to the hospital for the first time after the baby was born we made sure my wife and I weren't holding the new baby. I think it was important to reinforce that we were still mommy and daddy and the new baby hadn't taken his place. We also got a gift for him to bring to the hospital for her. I think those 2 things really started it out the right way. He now loves his sister and has almost no jealous or attention seeking moments.

Now that she is getting close to old enough to play with his stuff we'll see if it lasts.

Thanks. Ours is too young to have any idea why mommy has a big belly and is tired all the time but by the time they are born he should be more cognizant. I am hoping that actually makes it easier. He broke his leg a few months ago and my wife and I have worried about all sorts of stuff but he just walked around with the cast on like nothing happened. :)

[Wolfpack]

I had one of those cliched father moments tonight. We've recently gotten the middle daughter to transition to her own room to sleep at night, but it's hard for her to do it on her own, so I usually spend my time fiddling on my phone while sitting in her dark room waiting for her to go to sleep. I usually wait for her to snore a bit before thinking she's asleep and try to leave. This usually is ok, but sometimes she'll snap to when I exit the room and call me back in, claiming she wasn't asleep, so back in I go and wait for the next chance.

Well, tonight, I was sitting there on the floor as usual and I start to hear her snooze. I'd been finishing off a drink from a sandwich shop we got dinner at while waiting for her to sleep, so it was down to some ice chips and a little water. For whatever reason, the ice in the cup rattled extraordinarily loudly as I got up and moved to exit the room. Somehow the child sleeps through it. So far, so good. I pull the door shut and just barely let go of the handle standing in the hall... "Dad?" "Shit!" I grunted very loudly through clenched teeth. Something about the fact that I just swore very sharply that I'm sure everyone who was awake in the house at the time knew I said it made me start cracking up, like it was some stereotypical moment where a dad accidentally introduces his child to curse words for the first time or something. I go back into the room and at this point, I'm laughing my head off and my daughter doesn't understand why (thankfully I think she was too groggy to really understand what I had said). My wife messaged me and said "really? lol" which only made me laugh more. I do finally get settled down again and she does eventually go to sleep, but my abs got a workout from the whole thing. :D

[JonInMiddleGA]

So help me I think handling scheduling issues is easier for college than it is for high school. As relieved as my child will be to put K-12 behind him and move on I think our relief won't be much different.

Over it. We're just all so incredibly over it.

[Lathum]

Colins teacher told my wife something yesterday when she picked him up from his Pre-K he started a few weeks ago. The boy whose cubby is next to Colins is in a wheelchair. She told my wife that the boys have struck up quite a friendship, and Colin always plays with this other boy and doesn't treat him any differently. They play blocks and games together and have a great time doing it. I am so proud of Colin for looking at this kid like any other boy and not treating him any differently. As parents I think we all want our children to become better people then we are, and Colin is well on his way

[Coffee Warlord]

It'd be nice if my family could be healthy.

In the past month:

Wife caught nasty plague.
Son had ear infection.
Daughter had stomach bug.
I caught nasty plague.
Daughter now has a double ear infection & inflamed tonsils.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Since my last several posts in this thread have been less-than-fun stuff, I'll do a brag post tonight instead.

Props to my 16 y/o on being selected for the Watson-Brown Foundation Athens Chapter Junior Board (http://www.watson-brown.org/historic-homes/junior-board/overview). The honor involves a select group of local HS students in the grant process from RFP to application reviews to site visits, with them ultimately selecting recipient(s) of grants designed to preserve local history. It's a unique and highly useful experience that I'm happy he'll have.

I think the last 2-3 years worth of honorees from his school has included valedictorians & class presidents/officers, so for him to be selected ain't half bad company to be keeping.

It's also a great fit for him I think, something right up his alley.

[MacroGuru]

I haven't posted in here for a while...It's a Brag...

My daughter has been applying to colleges and working her tail off. Right now she is at 3.84 GPA and an 1170 on her SATs

She has applied to the following schools:

Georgetown
George Washington
Notre Dame
George Mason
James Madison
Niagara University
Hofstra
Roanoke
University of Utah
SUNY - Geneseo

Her #1 she wants to attend is George Mason, but the acceptance letters are coming in.

Right now she has been accepted to Niagara U with a 15K Scholarship and she just received an acceptance letter to Roanoke for 17K with it converting to full ride if she performs well with academics. Right now, her hard work is paying off and she is flabbergasted, she didn't think she would get this much in scholarships.

Right now I think she will go 10/10 on acceptance, it's just now figuring out who will pay the most :)

[Wolfpack]

My youngest daughter, all of seven months, is deciding she wants to keep up with her much, much older sisters (11 and 8). In the past few days, she's figured out crawling, cruising, and climbing a step. :eek:

[CraigSca]

Just confirmed today that we are headed to China on 12/10 to adopt our daughter. We'll be in China from 12/11 to 12/24, arriving home around midnight on Christmas Eve.

Going to be a very special Christmas this year :)

[Lathum]

Just confirmed today that we are headed to China on 12/10 to adopt our daughter. We'll be in China from 12/11 to 12/24, arriving home around midnight on Christmas Eve.

Going to be a very special Christmas this year :)

That is awesome!

Hoopsguy did something similar several years back, can't remember if it was China or not. I'm sure he would be happy to give any advice, as would I being someone who was adopted.

Looks like today is the day, hope all goes well!

[Lathum]

Well this is my first post in this thread. I was a single FOFC guy for about ten years and then have been lurking in this thread since I had my son 18 months ago. So my wife and I decided we wanted to have another little one to complete the panerd clan. Well life doesn't always work out as planned and we have twins on the way!

Not sure how to explain how I am feeling right now. Excited, bewildered, scared...

* Any parents of twins or of three kids within 2-3 years on here? My biggest concern is my wife's sanity when I go back to work and the lack of attention for our 2 year old once the twins are born.

* Any minivan owners on here? We love the stow and go of Dodge/Chrysler and are trying to figure out what positives other car companies offer.

Has this happened yet?

Should be getting close.

[flere-imsaho]

Me: "They're stationary objects son, they're kinda hard to miss"
Him: "yeah, I know, that's why I can't seem to miss them"

Smartass kid ;)

You realize you totally deserve this, right? :p

[flere-imsaho]

Him (6 years old): Daddy, do you have to get married?
Me: No, not if you don't want to.
Him: But if the woman you're with wants to get married, then you have to, right?
Me: Yes. Good point.

[panerd]

Has this happened yet?

Should be getting close.

Yes, last weekend. Thanks for asking. Two healthy (and big) baby boys. Wife actually avoided a C-section somehow which is fantastic for being able to deal with 3 boys under the age of 3. :-) Our oldest is doing a great job as big brother and loves them! Here is a family picture we just took for our Christmas card...

http://i1285.photobucket.com/albums/a581/panerd37/c46abbd6-8cee-46ea-8944-c270f6a6e8d8_zps4c12d815.jpg (http://s1285.photobucket.com/user/panerd37/media/c46abbd6-8cee-46ea-8944-c270f6a6e8d8_zps4c12d815.jpg.html)

[Lathum]

Congrats!

Great picture and great looking family ya got there!

[flere-imsaho]

Nice! GREAT picture. :D